


Wake the Devil (Not the Baby)

by EzraTheBlue



Series: Over The Moon [4]
Category: Saiyuki
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Japan, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Kid Fic, Love Confessions, M/M, Single Parent AU, Smut, Suicide/Self-Harm Mention, except this one's not really about the kids
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-23
Updated: 2018-02-23
Packaged: 2019-03-22 20:18:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,836
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13771764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EzraTheBlue/pseuds/EzraTheBlue
Summary: Gojyo has found that his relationship with Hakkai is waking up something he didn't know slept in him, and as he and Hakkai start combining their lives, he wonders just how far he can take it. Luckily, Hakkai has some very good ideas of where to go and is very willing to share...





	Wake the Devil (Not the Baby)

**Wake the Devil (Not the Baby)**

In the months since they'd met, Gojyo had come calling to Hakkai's little house more than a few times with Hanabi in tow, for game night, after school for homework, for a quick beverage after a trip to the playground, then, for more and more with flimsier and flimsier excuses for staying, and somehow or other, the empty little space Hakkai called home was filling out. Gojyo had thought it was sparse before, but now, there were Shinobu and Hanabi's drawings pinned on the refrigerator and the curtain wall that divided Hakkai's office from the main room. There was an extra chest of drawers in the bedroom. There were a few extra pink socks strewn around, some little ones, some big ones that had been white and gone in the wrong wash load. Gojyo found himself feeling a little more welcome every time he walked in, and he had to blame Hakkai for that.

It had been Hakkai to make the first move. One day, when they were all walking home from school together, Hakkai had asked the children about their day so Gojyo could linger back a few steps and smoke a cigarette in peace, and Hanabi had yanked her backpack around to her front and dove in to pull out a crumpled drawing.

“We were told to draw the first five people we thought of when we thought about people in our neighborhood, and we had to write a sentence about what makes them important to us! I thought about you second!” She waved a scribbled drawing of a dark-haired man with clumsy crayon-scrawl glasses. “And I wrote my sentence! Can you read it?”

“I can, yes!” Hakkai's eyes glimmered as he scanned Hanabi's scribble and rough katakana. “Why don't you read it so your Daddy can hear it?”

“Sure!” Hanabi took her paper, spread it proudly between her hands, and read aloud with intense pride, “Mr. Hakkai is my Daddy's friend and we spend lots of time and have fun together!”

“How lovely! I'm glad that's how you think of me.” Hakkai's entire expression was lit with elation, and he moved to pat her back, then hesitated, then patted her head. She giggled with glee, and he held his hand out. “Would you mind if I kept that? I'd like to put that on my wall with Shinobu's drawings.”

Shinobu immediately turned to Gojyo, cheeks pink. “Um, I didn't draw you. Sorry.”

Gojyo shook his head and waved his cigarette. “Hey, you must know plenty of people, eh? Next time, maybe?”

Shinobu looked relieved, nodding hard. “Next time!” Hakkai smiled knowingly, and folded Hanabi's drawing into a neat little square over his chest, pressed to his breastbone.

After that, Hanabi started asking him to put her drawings up, and Hakkai happily accepted every time. Gojyo couldn't help but laugh at how cute it was, even teasing her, “You ain't leavin' anything for my fridge!”

It only advanced from there. After one too many times when Gojyo and Hakkai watched a movie with the little ones that ran past their bedtime, and the credits rolled for two sleeping kindergarteners, Hakkai offered: “Would you like to keep a spare futon and some clothes here? I know you can carry her, but I hate to make you leave.”

Gojyo couldn't possibly say no, and their very next movie night ended with Hanabi in a spare futon (a Hello Kitty set that Hakkai had let her pick out, no less), and Gojyo sleeping on the sofa. Hakkai kept offering further concessions, entreating encroachment, inviting Gojyo and Hanabi in step by step. Their sleepovers were becoming more and more frequent, and Gojyo couldn't be happier.

He wanted to invite Hakkai in, too, in what ways he could.

He'd started giving Hakkai his work schedule. “See, now you know when I ain't busy. Like, work-busy.” He'd chuckled about it at the time, as Hakkai, knee to knee with him on his sofa, took it in, and Gojyo could almost see him memorizing it. “So, if I'm off during the day and you want some company for lunch or something, that way you and me can meet up while the kids are in school and have some 'us' time--”

“Ah, you would do that?” Hakkai lifted his face with what looked a lot like hope in the curve of his brow. Gojyo grinned and moved a hand to Hakkai's knee.

“Yeah, duh! Don't get me wrong, time with the kids is great, but those times when they're asleep and we're just sitting, talking, that's real nice too.” He squeezed Hakkai's knee, grinning with just a little mischief in it. “Plus, don't parents need a little alone time, sometimes?”

“They do. I'd love to spend some 'alone time' together with you.” Hakkai moved some hair from his eyes, fingers tracing down his cheeks as he thought, and his palm landed over Gojyo's. Gojyo felt as warm as a kernel of popcorn in the microwave, ready to pop with excitement at the thought.

Who knew that seeing doors open for him could make him so damn happy?

After that, nearly every time Gojyo had a day off, Hakkai would send him a text before his lunch hour and ask him to meet him at a restaurant or an intersection near his office. They would get lunch at a restaurant, or from the convenience store and share the time and meal on a park bench, or go to a ramen stand or quick-service place and slurp noodles or fried rice, elbow to elbow. They could talk about 'boring adult stuff' (as Hanabi would moan) uninterrupted, but they could do more adult things when it was just them.

Hakkai didn't like being overtly touchy, but Gojyo would feel him nudge his knee or touch his leg to Gojyo's under the bench or table. When they were walking back to Hakkai's office together, Gojyo would let his hand hang at his side and Hakkai would put his right beside it, their fingers tangling back and forth with the swing of their arms, and Gojyo would feel a little electricity every time their fingers touched. Gojyo had been with other people for wild nights and ventures, the sorts that left bruises and hickeys and even little limps or pulled muscles, but these stolen touches somehow felt so much more exciting.

Maybe it was because Gojyo knew Hakkai, knew the meaning behind those touches. Maybe it was the way Hakkai looked at him when he was doing it, that little bit of wild that sparked in those deep-green eyes. Gojyo felt a little lost when Hakkai held his gaze, like he'd been dropped into the middle of some deep forest and had to find his way out by the sound of Hakkai's voice alone. When Hakkai said his name, he was centered. There was something completely, utterly right about being with Hakkai.

Gojyo liked that there were little signs of himself in Hakkai's home, leaving his mark. He liked that he was part of Hakkai's life, that Hakkai was part of his. He liked that their kids got along, that Hanabi adored Hakkai, that Shinobu would take his hand when they crossed the street and that some of Shinobu's private smiles were for him.

The only thing that put Gojyo on edge at all was that he wasn't sure that this was just 'like' anymore. He liked that he was part of Hakkai's life, that Hakkai was part of his. He liked that their kids got along, that Hanabi adored Hakkai, that Shinobu would take his hand when they crossed the street and that some of Shinobu's private smiles were for him. He was completely okay with being past "like." He just wanted Hakkai to be okay with it, too. He wanted Hakkai to want him just as much as he wanted Hakkai.

Hakkai had granted whatever Gojyo had asked of him so far, though, even openly offering more than Gojyo dared venture. Gojyo just needed the chance to nudge just a little bit more into Hakkai's life, even into his heart.

Luckily, a movie night always made for opportunity.

Hanabi and Shinobu both fell asleep near the end of _My Neighbor Totoro_ , after all the excitement was over and as the movie was drawing down. The room was dimmed, no light but a single lamp from Hakkai's desk, so of course the friendly music and the hour would coincide to put the kids down for the count. Hakkai, however, was wide awake. He was always, surprisingly, charmed by the children's animated movies, paying apt attention and, if not riveted by the mild drama, clearly interested in every detail. Gojyo had expected him to be the type to bring work with him while watching material made for Shinobu, but no, he was alert and riveted by every little plot point, even with Shinobu fast asleep in his lap.

“It's so nice, to simply sit and enjoy something pleasant and comforting,” Hakkai said in a low voice, not a whisper, too affectionate. “I love the music, too.”

“It's funny, for me this is just nostalgia.” Gojyo rubbed Hanabi's back, and her head lolled over onto his shoulder. Lights out like thunder had struck her converter. “I watched _Totoro_ when I was her age, too.”

"I think we did, as well." Hakkai's fingers roamed into Shinobu's hair, tousling and teasing it. Gojyo raised an eyebrow, and Hakkai shook his head, correcting, "My sister and I."

"Oh. Yeah." Gojyo furrowed his brow. "Memories, right?"

"Pleasant ones." Hakkai nodded, then patted Shinobu's shoulder. "Wake up, dear; you have to brush your teeth before you sleep."

"Yeah, that's right." Gojyo kissed Hanabi's forehead until she opened a bleary eye. "Let's get them teeth clean and get your jammies on."

Hanabi had her own toothbrush here, a red one that she'd picked, but Gojyo still had to help her hold it and guide her through brushing every tooth at every angle. Hakkai mostly held Shinobu in place to make sure he didn't wander off or stop too soon. Hanabi kept trying to yawn around the foam, but Gojyo insistently held her chin still. “I know you're sleepy, short stack, but you need shiny teeth so I can see that big bright smile every day.” He let go of her. “Rinse it out.” She took a gulp from her glass on the counter, spit, and showed Gojyo her teeth in a smile. “Atta girl, what a pretty face.” He fluffed her hair, as Hakkai giggled from his side.

“Shinobu, show me?” He leaned forward, and Shinobu showed his teeth in a sleepy smile. “Very good. Let's change.” Hakkai glanced to Gojyo. “Why don't you lay out her futon in his room?”

Shinobu's room was very nearly as pin-neat as Hakkai kept the rest of the house, a few books on his shelf not quite in place, his hamper a little askew. Gojyo had seen Hakkai tell Shinobu to “pick up five things” before breakfast and after dinner, which was probably a good way of instilling the habit of keeping clean, and a reminder to Gojyo that Hakkai clearly knew what he was doing and Gojyo still had a lot to figure out. Either way, it was nice to be able to lay down Hanabi's futon next to Shinobu's bed, as Hakkai helped her into her nightgown and held the elastic on Shinobu's pants. Gojyo pulled back the covers on Shinobu's bed and fluffed his pillow, and Hakkai guided each stumbling little body to their respective resting place.

“Shut your eyes, shut your eyes,” he murmured near-melodically, and Gojyo folded Hanabi into her quilt as Hakkai tucked Shinobu in.

“Sweet dreams, kiddo.”

“Good night, Shinobu.”

Neither child answered, nothing coherent, and Hakkai and Gojyo shared a quick smile before retreating from the room and turning off the light. "You really are such a natural," Hakkai told him in a low murmur. "I admit, I've been trying to learn from your example."

"Yeah?" Gojyo hadn't noticed, but now that he thought on it, he had noticed Hakkai engaging Shinobu in a few looser rituals, acting just a little more casually. Hakkai nodded.

"I think he's reacting well. I'm seeing more smiles out of him, if nothing else, but that just may be you, as you are." Hakkai glowed in the dim light from the front room, those deep-green eyes twinkling to match his smile. Gojyo's face felt hot, like he was under a spotlight, but he managed a boyish chuckle and dusted his shoulder.

"I guess I am pretty cool."

"You are, yes." Hakkai's face crinkled up with mirth, like the wrapping on a Christmas present. "You've made such a change in our lives. I'm tremendously grateful for that." He leaned in to kiss Gojyo on the cheek, but Gojyo caught him by the breastbone as his heart leapt into his throat.

This was his chance, and Hakkai had, as if he'd known what Gojyo had wanted to do, opened the door wide.

"I'm more than grateful." Gojyo swallowed thickly. "I... I..." Damn it, he wasn't about to choke on his own pride! "I'm... I'm really glad you came into my life. I wanna be part of your life for as long as you'll have me." He felt Hakkai's heart jump under his palm, and relented only so he could lean in and kiss him on the mouth. Hakkai accepted, kissed him back, but when Gojyo pulled back, it was to find Hakkai gazing into his eyes.

"Gojyo? You..." He touched his fingers to his lips, and Gojyo felt his face go from hot to steaming.

"C'mon, are you gonna make me say it like I do to Hanabi?" He grinned sheepishly, but he saw Hakkai faintly nod. Gojyo smirked as he remembered the day he'd met Hakkai, being tied up in Valentine's wishes, and knew he had to do it. He curled his hands into the shape of a heart, and repeated just what Hanabi had likely wanted him to say to Hakkai then: "I love you, love you, love you a lot, okay?"

Hakkai's expression somehow brightened as if a firework had cast its light below him, and he actually laughed aloud before cupping a hand over his mouth to mute himself. “Oh, goodness, the children will hear us – but – is that what you think? How you feel?” Hakkai leaned towards Goyjo and slid his slender fingers up the breadth of his chest, and Gojyo's breath caught.

No anonymous, hardly-remembered fling had ever made him feel so close to another person as that touch. Shit, how had he lived with this and not noticed until this exact second?

“It's convenient, at least.” Hakkai leaned in towards him again, subtly pinning Gojyo against the wall with the curve of his arm and that hand still on his chest. “I want you in my life, too. I'll let you in, if you'll keep me.”

In that moment, Hakkai leaned in and kissed Gojyo on the mouth, and Gojyo was lost. He slid his hand up Gojyo's chest to his shoulder, his other down to his hip, and Gojyo just threw his arms tight around Hakkai and held tight as Hakkai captured his mouth. Gojyo hadn't thought he'd be the one overwhelmed here. He also had absolutely no problem with it.

When Hakkai released him from the kiss, he was panting for breath, mind hurtling through the stratosphere like a shooting star breaking orbit, and all he could put into words was, “Fuck the hell yes.”

“Language.” Hakkai gave him a fierce peck to his lips, still smiling. “The children might hear.” He canted in again to kiss Gojyo's neck. “Ah, my, but it's been so long...” He kissed a little trail down Gojyo's neckline, and Gojyo hummed his appreciation until Hakkai bit down on his collarbone, just a little, and made him yelp.

“Watch those teeth, babe.” Gojyo braced his hands on Hakkai's hips, grinning nervously. “Like you said, the kids--”

“Shh. Do you want me to stop?” Hakkai pecked at his lips again, and Gojyo realized Hakkai had slid a hand down into his back pocket and was caressing his backside with those sly, slender fingers.

“Hell no,” Gojyo hissed, just as Hakkai pressed in and squeezed a little, kneading the muscle with a pleased little smile. “But shouldn't we--”

“I wonder,” Hakkai said, not quite hiding just how breathless he was, “If I can make you scream without screaming. I've never wanted a lover this much, but now I've found you and all I want is to take you to your brink.”

Damn, Gojyo had no idea where Hakkai had been hiding this ruthless streak, but he already loved it. There was something vicious, all business, no mercy, hiding under that smile, and though Gojyo loved the mild-mannered, reserved man who shepherded his children with a firm hand, he liked that firm hand kneading his ass and working his thumb down into the elastic of his boxer shorts. Hakkai's palm was warm down his thigh, but chill ran down Gojyo's spine. Then, he gripped Gojyo's dick in his palm, and Gojyo groaned and thumped his head back into the wall. Hakkai hushed him, then caressed his shaft, all the way from the bottom to the top. “Shh, shh,” he murmured, then took him firmly in hand again and gave his shaft a pump. Gojyo had to bite his lip to muffle another noise, and Hakkai chuckled softly and worked his pants down past his hips to free his erection. “I see you're a quick study.”

Gojyo couldn't help but blurt out, “You'd be surprised how good I was in sex ed,” until Hakkai swept down and closed his lips around the head of Gojyo's dick. Gojyo tried to say something else clever but all that came out was “S'good, don't stop!”

“Mm,” Hakkai said, shaking his head just a little and loosing Gojyo from the warmth of his mouth. “Don't wake the children. If you do, I'll have to stop.”

“Ohh,” Gojyo groaned, keeping his voice as low as he could, chest aching, “That ain't fair, babe, let's at least move it to the--” Hakkai sucked him back in again, his tongue hot and swift against his shaft, and Gojyo couldn't get enough air to beg Hakkai to move to the sofa before he had to swallow another moan.

He was sure Hakkai was doing this on purpose now. Dirty, clever, sly, beautiful bastard. Gojyo tried to dig his fingers into the wall to brace himself, and Hakkai tilted his head and slid Gojyo's dick somehow deeper, and it took all of Gojyo's focus not to cry out. He could feel Hakkai laughing silently, the noise echoing through his nerves like a pachinko ball ricocheting off of every bone in his spine, arcing like static electricity, more intense than a hurricane touching down in his gut.

“Haahh!” He couldn't hold it in, because Hakkai was moving on him now, in and out, and Gojyo couldn't keep from thrusting back, either. “So good, babe,” he whispered, because he had to channel it somehow. “You feel so good, you're so good--”

“Shhh.” Hakkai had let his cock from his lips, cold air sending a shock up Gojyo's spine, but he wrapped a hand around it as the spit cooled to heat him right back up. Gojyo's belly felt tight and hot, his libido a star going supernova, and that bright look in Hakkai's eyes, all mischief and delight, made him want to implode. Hakkai gave Gojyo's cockhead a firm caress, thumbing the slit then licking the little drops of precum that escaped, then added, “We're not alone, are we?”

Gojyo knew it, too. The kids were right on the other side of the wall, they were one sheet of drywall from not being alone together anymore.

“You're fucking cruel,” Gojyo half-hissed, half-crooned. “Such a tease, babe, beggin' ya—”

Hakkai squeezed a little harder, working Gojyo's shaft faster as he stood to look him in the eyes, somehow not stopping. “Isn't that part of the fun? The chase? The thrill?” Hakkai's hand was so clever, fast fingers working him in all the right ways, and his free hand snaked around to Gojyo's ass again to squeeze and caress. Gojyo's heart lurched again, and he grounded both his heels against what felt like a massive thunderclap building on the horizon in his core. His heart was thumping in his chest like a steam engine on overdrive as he teetered on the brink, ready to scream, ready to cry, but knowing just how high the risk was kept his toes at the very thought of losing either this sensation or the kids' innocence. Just as Gojyo thought he might actually break, Hakkai closed in, nose to Gojyo's, his mouth a breath away from touching his. When he spoke it was as intimate as a kiss: “Show me. Your restraint, your control, your power, your wild side, I want all of it.” He jerked Gojyo firmer, harder, and covered Gojyo's mouth with his in a deep kiss.

Gojyo would have yelled if Hakkai hadn't stolen his breath, and he came in a hot burst. He was blinded and numb for what felt like hours, as Hakkai released his mouth and shushed him again, but worked him through the throbbing pulses of his orgasm.

“Shh, shh,” Hakkai hushed him again, and peeled him off the wall. Gojyo, boneless and relaxed in the wake of ecstasy, let Hakkai guide him to the sofa now (oh, _now_ he lets him away from the kids' room! _Sadist,_ Gojyo thought, _pretty, sneaky little sadist_ ), and the two of them collapsed together into a clumsy heap, Hakkai laid flat on his back, Gojyo half on top of him. Hakkai's hands landed on his hips as Gojyo eased himself into a straddle over Hakkai, and Hakkai's obvious arousal prodded the inside of Gojyo's thigh through his slacks.

“Aha.” Gojyo grinned sleepily and slid a hand over the bulge. “Looks like I didn't have all the fun, but someone ain't done yet.”

“Oh, Gojyo,” Hakkai murmured, shaking his head and smiling up at him, eyes gleaming and cheeks bright pink in the dim light, looking sated despite not being satisfied. “Just seeing you, so wild, that was enough for me.”

It was Gojyo's turn: “Shhh.” He bent down and brushed his lips against Hakkai's, then used that brief distraction to free Hakkai's cock, hard and dark red with need, from his fly. He rucked Hakkai's shirt up, dragging his palm over his concave belly – then stopped.

He felt a strange ridge over Hakkai's hips, and glanced down to see a curious scar: the kanji for “never” etched next to his navel. Gojyo saw Hakkai's eyes bat shut with shame, but he leaned down and kissed Hakkai again, deeper. “Later,” he whispered. “For now, all I want is to see that smile again.”

He straddled Hakkai's hips, his softening dick against Hakkai's hot erection, and gripped the both of them together. He rolled his hips against Hakkai's, nice and slow, stroking their dicks together. Hakkai, rapt with the motion of Gojyo's body and already so close to the edge, didn't last long and came with a soft gasp, spilling down the back of Gojyo's hand and over his cock and thighs. “Sorry,” he whispered, groping for the tissues on the coffee table, and Gojyo shook his head and chuckled.

“Don't be. We both got what we came here for, but never let it be said I don't give as good as I get.” He let Hakkai wipe the both of them off, fixed his disheveled pants and boxers, then kissed him a few times on the forehead. “You wanna cuddle here, or get the futons out?”

“Here.” Hakkai edged as close to the inside of the sofa as he could and patted the empty space next to him, and Gojyo stretched out alongside him, then slung an arm over his chest. Hakkai sighed a little into Gojyo's neck, and Gojyo felt himself melt a little more, fall a little deeper. He kissed Hakkai's forehead a few times as he rubbed his cheek against Gojyo's neck, the two of them settling into the quiet.

Gojyo couldn't let it sit, not just yet. “So, do you wanna tell me?”

Hakkai made an unhappy noise, but opened an eye. “Memories.” The word had a weight to it that wasn't there before, one that lay heavy on Gojyo's chest as surely as it still did on Hakkai's heart, and his next words felt labored. “The weeks after Shinobu were born were...” He hesitated, eye closing again. “Difficult, to say the least. I was lost. Learning what had happened to my sister, that I couldn't protect her, and suddenly being a father when I was barely managing my own life... I felt hopeless.” Gojyo saw Hakkai drag his hand down his chest to the scar, grimacing as his hand landed there. “I didn't know if I could parent him. I didn't know if I wanted to. I had no idea what I was doing, I felt like such a dreadful failure in every way. I thought there was only one escape.” His lips curled into a wry, bitter smile against Gojyo's neck. “And... I mentioned our family was an old one, didn't I? I thought there was only one appropriate way out, one form of surrender – the same as a failure in the Sengoku Jidai days might have.”

Gojyo hadn't gotten far in history class, but he remembered some of the parts he didn't sleep through. “You didn't.”

“I came so close.” Hakkai flattened his palm against Gojyo's chest, and Gojyo wrapped his arm a little tighter around Hakkai's chest. “I had the knife right there... but I heard Shinobu cry, and it reminded me of something someone had told me earlier that day.” Hakkai paused. “I'd... I'd met another young father, struggling with his child. He'd seemed so calm, though, and he told me that his love for his child kept him going.” Gojyo nodded; he knew what that felt like, for sure.

“Thoughts like that are probably all that kept me goin' some days.”

“Precisely.” Hakkai sighed a little. “I couldn't feel his love for me, not yet, but I was all he had. If I were no longer alive, he'd have nobody to love him, and I couldn't damn him to my fate. Instead, I made a vow, etched into my very skin, that I would never give up on him.” Gojyo felt Hakkai's hand close into a tight fist, as solid as a swear. “I would stay with him, and I would never leave.”

Gojyo thought on that, let it roll in his head. “Keep that promise to him.” He kissed Hakkai on the cheek. “I want you to stay, too.” Hakkai was quiet for a long time, and as Gojyo ran his fingers through his hair, he could almost feel the thoughts swirling in that complicated, clever brain. Only now was Gojyo realizing just what sort of person he'd fallen for, and somehow, it was only making him fall a little harder, a little faster. Hakkai already had a special place in his life, and even a brief look around this room alone, or one peek into Shinobu's room, would tell that Gojyo had a place in his life, too. “You belong here.”

“Mm.” Hakkai nodded a little, and turned his face into Gojyo, sinking into him. “Yes. Let's stay here, at least a little longer.”

Gojyo realized Hakkai meant 'here' as in cramped on the sofa, and chuckled. He didn't feel like arguing, but instead much more like cuddling, as intimate with Hakkai as he'd ever been and happier than he'd ever thought he'd be for it...

… until he was awoken from a sound sleep into the dark room by a tiny hand pushing on his back. “Daddy!” Hanabi was hissing in his ear, and Gojyo groaned and rolled over to face him, just to see her pushing her hands on her hips and jutting her lower lip out, and scolding him in a harsh whisper, “You're too loud!” She stomped her little foot at him. “You and Mr. Hakkai gotta stop snoring! You're keepin' us awake!”

Gojyo felt Hakkai shift next to him, smirked to himself, and mussed her hair. “You got no idea what 'too loud' is, short stack. Come on, let's get you back to sleep.” He rolled to a stand, letting the only thing that could have possibly torn him away from Hakkai in that moment drag him back towards the bedroom so he could tuck her in one more time. Hakkai sat up a little to watch them go, clearly stifling a laugh, and Gojyo decided it might not be the worst idea to see just how _quiet_ Hakkai could be when the children were asleep again.

**Author's Note:**

> I admit, this one started off being a lot funnier in my head, but the guys just had to go all serious on me at the end, haha...
> 
> One other note: in the conversation between Hakkai and Hanabi, where he asks her to read what she wrote? This is a little trick I learned when I was teaching. Often, a child's earliest writing will be illegible, but they will remember what they wrote. Encouraging a child to "read" their own writing encourages them to keep writing more than just saying, "I can't read it" or making up what it says, because the child will know you're faking it. Hakkai wants to know what Hanabi wrote, of course, so he invites her to tell him. He's a good almost-dad, right? ;D


End file.
